Former ICE Agent Calls for Sanctions on Mexico, China Over Drug Trafficking

Former ICE Agent Calls for Sanctions on Mexico, China Over Drug Trafficking
A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chemist pours 2,500 packs of confirmed fentanyl onto a counter for testing at the DEA Northeast Regional Laboratory on Oct. 8, 2019, in New York. Don Emmert/AFP via Getty Images
Tiffany Meier
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On Tuesday, the U.S. government levied sanctions on 17 Mexican and Chinese companies for their suspected involvement in the production of illicit fentanyl. The target, however, should be the two governments themselves, according to former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Victor Avila.

The Biden administration imposed sanctions on May 30 on 17 people and organizations it says are distributing equipment used in producing illicit pills that frequently include fentanyl. This synthetic opioid painkiller is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine.

Hannah Ng is a reporter covering U.S. and China news. She holds a master's degree in international and development economics from the University of Applied Science Berlin.
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